Theressa was overwhelmed. The room was dimly lit, casting long shadows that danced ominously on the walls. Her heart pounded in her chest, each beat echoing the frantic pace of her thoughts. The gun in her hand felt heavier with each passing second, but she kept it steady, pointed directly at Olivia. Despite the threat, Olivia didn't flinch. He remained seated, his posture calm and composed, the exact way he was when Theressa had burst into the room.
"Don't worry, I just placed her on some sort of drugs. I can't hurt the love of my life," he said, his voice eerily calm, his gaze softening as he spoke. There was a twisted sincerity in his eyes that sent a shiver down Theressa's spine. She could hardly believe the words he was saying, and she was taken aback by the sudden revelation. Disgust churned in her stomach.
"She doesn't love you," Theressa retorted, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear. The words hung heavy in the air, and Olivia's gaze darkened, his eyes narrowing into a menacing glare.
The silence that followed was suffocating. Theressa's mind raced as she tried to piece together the scene before her.
Olivia's gaze darkened, glaring at Theressa with an intensity that made the air feel thick with hostility. The muscles in his jaw tightened as he took a slow, deliberate step closer, his eyes burning with a mix of hatred and resentment.
"You are just like your father," Olivia spat, his voice dripping with venom. "Your looks, and how weak you are, and I'm so grateful you have just a little resemblance to my love. But still, seeing his face in you disgusts me."
Theressa scoffed, a bitter laugh escaping her lips. She could feel the tension mounting, the room charged with a dangerous energy. She stood her ground, refusing to be intimidated by his words or his presence.
"I think we both know who the weak one is here," Theressa retorted, her voice steady despite the turmoil inside her. "You can't even keep your family together, yet you try to steal another man's wife."
She knew she had hit a nerve. Olivia's eyes flashed with a dangerous light, and in an instant, he sprang off his chair, rounding his desk in a fit of rage. His movements were quick, almost predatory, and for a moment, Theressa felt a surge of fear.
As Olivia closed the distance between them, Theressa's mind raced. She tightened her grip on the gun, but her resolve wavered. She had to stay strong. She had to protect herself and the woman he had drugged.
"You're pathetic," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "You think you can control everyone around you, but all you've done is isolate yourself. You've destroyed your own life."
Olivia's expression twisted into a mask of rage as he took another step towards Theressa.
"Don't get any closer or I will shoot-" Theressa's warning was cut off abruptly. Before she could even complete her sentence, the gun was snatched from her grip.
A pair of strong hands yanked her arms behind her back, twisting them painfully. She struggled to free herself, but the grip was unyielding. "Let me go!" she yelled, her voice a mixture of anger and desperation.
Olivia chuckled, a low, sinister sound that sent chills down her spine. He moved behind Mary, the unconscious woman on the couch, his finger tracing along the sides of her face with a sickening tenderness. "Such a delicate flower," he murmured, his voice dripping with mockery.
Theressa's screams echoed through the room, desperate and filled with a primal fear. "Let me go!" she cried, her struggles growing more frantic by the second. But her captor's grip remained unyielding, holding her in a vice-like embrace.
Olivia's voice cut through her cries, cold and menacing. "I told you," he said, his tone dripping with contempt. "You are just like your father. And that's the reason I can't leave her in your care. She belongs to me. She has always belonged to me."
Theressa's heart pounded in her chest as she tried to process his words. What did he mean by "she"? And why did he sound so possessive, as if Mary were nothing more than a piece of property?
"What do you mean?" Theressa asked, her voice trembling with confusion and fear.
Olivia's eyes narrowed, his gaze darkening with anger and resentment. "Your mother," he spat out the words like venom, "worked for me. She was with me through thick and thin. She was my secretary, she stood by me."
Theressa's mind reeled at the revelation. Her mother had never mentioned anything about working for Olivia. In fact, she had always spoken of him with disdain, as if he were a distant memory best forgotten.
"You cheated?" she whispered, the weight of the revelation crashing down on her like a ton of bricks. She couldn't help but think about Marcelo, about the hurt he would feel finding out about this betrayal.
But Olivia's response was anything but remorseful. "Cheat?" he scoffed, the word rolling off his tongue with a sickening amusement. It made Theressa's blood boil, the injustice of it all burning deep within her.
"Want to know something more interesting?" Olivia continued, his voice eager and excited, as if he were reveling in the chaos he had caused. But Theressa couldn't bring herself to respond. There was nothing Olivia could say that would shock her more than what she had already heard.
And then he dropped the bombshell. "You have a brother," he confessed, his words hanging heavy in the air like a dark cloud.
Theressa's eyes widened in disbelief as she heard the familiar voice, her heart pounding in her chest like a drum. "Guess who?" the voice taunted, sending shivers down her spine.
No, no, it couldn't be. It couldn't possibly be him. Please, don't let it be him. Her mind raced with a thousand thoughts in just a few seconds, each one more terrifying than the last.
And then, as if on cue, the door flung open, revealing the two figures standing on the threshold. There they were, the two males. One of them was her brother, the brother she had never known existed until now.